NCJ Number
130604
Journal
Violence and Victims Volume: 6 Issue: 1 Dated: (Spring 1991) Pages: 43-55
Date Published
1991
Length
13 pages
Annotation
Using data obtained from semi-structured interviews with 67 victims of wife assault, this study documents police response to wife assault in Northern Ireland with particular focus on the context of political violence in Northern Ireland.
Abstract
Strategies used by police to deal with wife assault cases where no court order is in force included intervention (47 percent), non-intervention (33 percent), intervention as a last resort (11 percent), and assistance to victim only (9 percent). In 61 percent of cases occurring after the issue of a court order, the issuance was a sufficient deterrent, but in 39 percent, police enforcement was required and 29 breaches were reported. The women felt that the political conflict impacted on the type of the violence they experienced, the involvement of the police, police procedures, and police attitudes. In general, these results show that the patterns of police response to wife assault in Northern Ireland were similar to those found in North America and Britain, in particular, police reluctance to arrest or charge offenders and the women's lack of confidence in and dissatisfaction with the police. However, unique problems emerge within this political context in which the police focus on internal security and terrorist activity. Difficulties are encountered with accessibility of the police, unsympathetic police response, and different female victimization experience in that the men use their powers of membership of illegal organizations or access to weapons to further intimidate or threaten their wives. 7 tables and 38 references (Author abstract modified)